While most bands presumably want their songs available on iTunes, last April Pink Floyd took the unusual step of suing its own record label (EMI) to prevent the online sale of individual tracks stripped from its original albums.

This past summer, in only the second lawsuit of its kind to go to trial, Boston University graduate student Joel Tenenbaum was ordered to pay four record labels a total of $675,000 in damages for illegally downloading 30 songs and sharing them online. The decision came one day after the 25-year-old doctoral student [...]

The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers recently sued Verizon Wireless, alleging that Verizon was both “engag[ing] in public performances of musical works when it downloads ringtones to customers” and “secondarily liable for public performances of musical works when customers play ringtones on their telephones.” Opinion, p. 7. ASCAP [...]

Corporate radio and mainstream record labels have long enjoyed a seemingly symbiotic relationship that serves their mutual interests in the music industry–making money. Labels provide stations nationwide with the records of up-and-coming artists, and radio stations turn those artists, like Britney Spears and John Mayer, into mega-stars–or so they say. With the demise of Continue Reading →